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Hamas said on Friday (August 16) that the Palestinian group rejected “new conditions” in a Gaza ceasefire plan proposed by the United States after two days of talks with Israeli negotiators in Qatar.
The war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip has lasted for more than 10 months. As international pressure for a ceasefire continues to grow, US President Joe Biden said: “We are closer to a ceasefire than we have ever been.”
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Israel this weekend to advance the latest proposal, the State Department said.
“Secretary Blinken will emphasize the urgent need for all parties in the region to avoid escalation or any other actions that could undermine the ability to reach an agreement,” the report said.
Washington, along with its European allies, has pushed for a quick ceasefire in Gaza since the July 31 attack that killed Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran, which Israel condemned, prompting threats of retaliation and raising fears of a wider war in the Middle East.
Egyptian, Qatari and U.S. mediators have been seeking to finalize details of a framework initially proposed by Biden in May, which he said was proposed by Israel.
But months of negotiations have so far failed to hammer out details of a ceasefire and hostage release deal.
The mediator said the two days of talks in Doha were “serious and constructive”.
They said in a joint statement that the United States had put forward a “transitional proposal” aimed at ensuring a swift deal at a new round of talks in Cairo next week.
Hamas quickly announced its opposition to the “new conditions” proposed by Israel in its latest plan.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on mediators to “put pressure” on Hamas to “accept the May 27 principles,” referring to Biden’s framework.
Western ally Jordan, however, placed the blame for blocking a deal squarely on Netanyahu. Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said: “All those who want a deal must effectively put pressure on him directly.”
‘Need to calm down’
Sources familiar with the matter told AFP that Hamas objects to conditions including: allowing Israeli troops to be stationed in Gaza’s border area with Egypt; Israel having a veto over the exchange of Palestinian prisoners for Israeli hostages; and the right to deport some prisoners instead of sending them back to Gaza.
Diplomatic pressure on Israel to agree to a ceasefire has increased in recent weeks.
Hamas officials, some analysts and protesters in Israel accuse Netanyahu of prolonging the war.
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy and French Foreign Minister Stéphane Sequione held talks in Israel on Friday to urge a ceasefire in Gaza.
The UK Foreign Office said the two ministers would “stress that there is no time for delays or excuses to reach a ceasefire agreement.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz told visiting foreign ministers that he hoped foreign countries would support an “attack” on Iran if it attacked Israel in retaliation for Haniyeh’s killing.
Secione responded that it would be “inappropriate” to discuss how to respond to any attack while diplomatic efforts were focused on preventing it.
A senior U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that if Iran attacked Israel, it would face “catastrophic” consequences.
‘Impunity’
Israeli settlers launched a deadly attack in the occupied West Bank on Thursday night, sparking international condemnation and calls for sanctions against the Israeli government, including government ministers, over increasing settler violence against Palestinians since the start of the Gaza war.
The Israeli military said “dozens of Israeli civilians, some of them wearing masks,” entered the village of Jit west of Nablus and “set fire to vehicles and buildings in the area, throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails.” A Palestinian man was shot dead.
Villager Hassan Arman said the settlers were carrying knives, machine guns and silencers.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry described the attack as “organized state terrorism.”
Britain’s foreign minister called the attack “abhorrent”. France’s foreign minister said it was “unacceptable”.
The European Union’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said he would propose sanctions against the Israeli government if it supports violence by Jewish settlers.
Borrell wrote on X: “Day after day, Israeli settlers incite violence in the occupied West Bank with almost total impunity, jeopardizing any chance for peace.”
“The Israeli government must immediately cease these unacceptable actions,” he wrote.
Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a supporter of West Bank settlements, quickly joined other Israeli leaders in condemning Thursday’s “criminal” attack.
Evacuation Order
The war, which began on Oct. 7 when Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on Israel, has killed 1,198 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures.
The militants also took 251 hostages, 111 of whom remain in Gaza, and the military said 39 of them were dead. More than 100 were released during a week-long ceasefire in November.
The death toll from Israel’s retaliatory military operations in Gaza surpassed 40,000 on Thursday, according to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip’s Health Ministry, which did not provide specific details on civilian and militant casualties.
As ceasefire talks in Gaza continue, bomb attacks continue in Palestinian territories.
The Israeli military issued new evacuation orders on Friday for parts of Deir al-Balah in central Gaza and the southern region of Khan Younis.
“In every round of negotiations, they apply pressure through forced evacuations and massacres,” Issa Murad, a Gazan displaced to Deir al-Balah, said of Israeli forces.
Read more by Euractiv
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