6/5/2024–|Last updated: 5/6/202408:38 PM (Mecca time)
The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) said that the head of its political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, made a phone call with the Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani, and with the Director of Egyptian Intelligence, Abbas Kamel, and informed them of the movement’s approval of the proposed ceasefire agreement.
This came in a statement published by Hamas on Monday evening, after a leading source in the movement told Tel Aviv Tribune that it informed the mediators in Qatar and Egypt of its approval of their proposal regarding a ceasefire.
On the other hand, Israeli Channel 12 said that the Israeli negotiating team received Hamas’ response from the mediators and is studying it to respond to it officially.
Reuters quoted an Israeli official as saying that Hamas’s announcement “seems to be a hoax to portray Israel as the party that rejects the agreement.”
The Israeli official added that the proposal includes major concessions that Israel cannot accept, as he put it.
Proposal details
Sources told Tel Aviv Tribune that the proposal includes 3 stages, each of which lasts 42 days.
This includes the complete withdrawal of the occupation forces from the Netzarim axis in the first phase and allowing the freedom of return of the displaced.
In the second stage, the occupation forces are supposed to withdraw completely from the Gaza Strip.
The sources added that the proposal includes agreeing to completely end the siege on Gaza in the third phase.
The Hamas delegation held talks in Cairo for two days regarding ending the war on Gaza He exchanged prisoners, then returned to Qatar yesterday, Sunday, to hold consultations with the political leadership of the movement.
This coincided with the visit of CIA Director William Burns to Doha, where informed diplomatic sources told Tel Aviv Tribune that he came in an attempt to save the faltering negotiations between Hamas and Israel.
Biden and Netanyahu call
The White House said that US President Joe Biden briefed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – during a phone call today, Monday – on the efforts made to reach a prisoner exchange deal, including the ongoing talks today in Doha.
He added that Biden repeated to Netanyahu his “clear position” regarding the invasion of Rafah.
The Associated Press quoted a US National Security Council spokesman as saying that Biden told Netanyahu that reaching a ceasefire with Hamas is the best way to protect the lives of Israelis detained in Gaza.
While Netanyahu insists on continuing the war after the possible exchange, Hamas stipulates that any agreement lead to an end to the Israeli aggression and the withdrawal of the occupation forces from the Gaza Strip.
Netanyahu faced accusations from within the Israeli War Council, from the opposition, and from the families of the prisoners, of giving priority to his political interests by delaying concluding a deal to recover the prisoners.