The US State Department stated that it is awaiting the response of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) to the proposed prisoner exchange deal, while the movement said that it will deal “seriously and positively” with any ceasefire agreement that includes a cessation of war and a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.
The US State Department said that it was waiting for Hamas to respond through official channels to a deal proposal that was conveyed to it, and that the response should not take long, because it is almost identical to what it agreed to weeks ago, according to the US State Department.
She indicated that she had worked over the past few days with Egypt and Qatar to reach a ceasefire that would lead to lasting peace, accusing Hamas of being the obstacle to reaching a ceasefire agreement in Gaza.
The Foreign Ministry said that reaching a ceasefire would lead to calming the situation on the Lebanese-Israeli border.
Washington confirmed that it is holding talks with the Egyptians and Israelis to reopen the Rafah crossing and increase aid entering Gaza, noting that the talks include ensuring that Hamas does not manage the crossing, but rather is handled by another authority that it seeks to determine.
The Israeli Broadcasting Authority reported that the War Council decided not to leave the negotiating delegation to Doha until Hamas responded to the proposal.
Axios quoted officials as saying that Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani and Egypt’s Intelligence Director Abbas Kamel met today in Doha with Hamas officials to discuss the potential deal.
Cairo News Channel said that the Qatari capital, Doha, is hosting – today, Wednesday – an Egyptian-Qatari-American meeting to discuss mechanisms for resuming negotiations after US President Joe Biden’s speech.
Deal proposal
Yesterday, the Qatari government announced that it had received the deal proposal as announced by Biden, and in turn handed it over to Hamas.
After Biden spoke – last Friday – about a three-stage Israeli proposal that includes a ceasefire in Gaza, the release of detainees, and the reconstruction of the Strip, the next day, Qatar, Egypt, and the United States called on both Hamas and Israel to conclude an agreement that embodies the principles announced by Biden.
Brett McGurk, Biden’s senior advisor, arrived in Cairo a day after CIA Director William Burns arrived in Doha, to discuss mechanisms for resuming negotiations to stop the war on Gaza.
On the other hand, the head of the Hamas political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, said – in a statement today, Wednesday – that the movement will deal “seriously and positively” with any ceasefire agreement based on a complete cessation of the war, a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and an exchange of Israeli-Palestinian prisoners.
Haniyeh added – in a statement – that “Hamas is conducting the negotiations armed with this position, which represents the will of our people and their valiant resistance.”
Since October 7, 2023, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza that has left more than 119,000 Palestinians dead or wounded, most of them children and women, and about 10,000 missing, amid massive destruction and famine that claimed the lives of children and the elderly.