As international pressure increases to restrain Israel from its planned ground offensive on Rafah, negotiations for a truce took place Tuesday in Egypt with the heads of American intelligence, his Israeli counterpart and the Prime Minister of Qatar.
Negotiations for the establishment of a truce in Gaza in exchange for the release of hostages took place on Tuesday in Cairo. Egypt, traditional mediator between Israelis and Palestinians, hosted the American and Israeli intelligence directors as well as the Prime Minister of Qatar, Hamas’ favored mediator.
According to the AP news agency, several officials are reporting progress towards a new ceasefire after the one which allowed numerous hostage releases at the end of November.
A senior Egyptian official said mediators had made progress “relatively important“. Before the meeting, the official said the meeting focused on “developing a final project” agreed a six-week ceasefire, with guarantees that the parties would continue negotiations towards a permanent ceasefire.
CIA chief William Burns and David Barnea, head of the Israeli Mossad, participated in the Cairo negotiations. Both men played a key role in securing the previous ceasefire.
A Western diplomat stationed in the Egyptian capital also said a six-week deal was on the table, but warned there was still work to be done to reach an agreement. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the sensitive discussions with the media.
Weeks of negotiations
Although they have not disclosed specific details of the emerging deal, the two sides have been discussing various proposals for weeks.
Israel proposed a two-month ceasefire in which the hostages would be released in exchange for the release of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel, and Hamas’ top leaders in Gaza would be allowed to move to other countries.
Hamas rejected these conditions. He presented a plan in three phases of 45 days each, in which the hostages would be released in stages, Israel would free hundreds of imprisoned Palestinians, including high-ranking militants, and the war would end, with the withdrawal of Israeli troops . The deal was seen as a failure for Israel, which wants to overthrow Hamas before ending the war.
However, President Joe Biden indicated Monday that a deal may be within reach. “Key elements of the deal are on the table“, Joe Biden said alongside King Abdullah II of Jordan, visiting the country, while adding that there were still gaps to be filled. He added that the United States would “everything that is possible” so that an agreement can be reached.
The Health Ministry in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip reports 28,473 deaths in Gaza since the war began on October 7. It specifies that more than 68,000 people were injured.
Two Al Jazeera journalists seriously injured
On the ground, fighting continues. In Rafah, the dead were still being counted after theoperation to free the two hostages on Monday, the death toll rising to 74 on Tuesday. Residents and displaced Palestinians from Gaza were sifting through the rubble from Israeli airstrikes that served as cover for the rescue mission.
Al Jazeera, the Qatar-funded pan-Arab channel, said an Israeli airstrike in Rafah injured two of its journalists, cameraman Ahmad Matar and reporter Ismail Abu Omar, one of whom had to undergo amputation. It was unclear when the strike took place and there was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.
While concerns have increased over Rafah, which is home to large numbers of Palestinians, fighting continues across the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli military said troops were fighting in Gaza’s second city, Khan Yunis, and the central Gaza Strip. She said Tuesday that three soldiers had been killed in action, bringing the number of troop deaths since the start of the ground operation in the Gaza Strip at the end of October to 232.
South Africa urges UN to examine complaint against Israel
The South African government said on Tuesday it had filed a “urgent request” before the UN International Court of Justice (ICF) to determine whether Israeli strikes on Rafah and its intention to launch a ground offensive on the city constitute a violation of the UN Genocide Convention.
The South African government said in a statement that Rafah is “the last refuge for Gaza survivors“. He asked the UN’s highest court to consider using its powers to issue orders directing Israel to end its military offensive.
South Africa has already accused Israel of committing genocide against the Palestinian people in its war against Hamas in Gaza. Charges accompanied by a file filed with the ICJ last December. A judgment from the Court is not expected for several years.
South Africa also asked the court to order a ceasefire from Israel, but the judges did not grant the request.