In the indirect negotiations between Israel and the Islamist Hamas on a settlement of the Gaza war, the start of the permanent ceasefire is emerging as the biggest point of contention.
Hamas has insisted on a permanent ceasefire from the beginning, the newspaper “The Times of Israel” reported on Thursday, citing two officials involved in the matter. Israel’s government, on the other hand, initially only wants a temporary ceasefire during which more hostages are to be released.
Hamas fears that without the guarantee of a permanent ceasefire, Israeli forces could resume fighting after the release of some of the hostages remaining in the Gaza Strip, the report said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly stated that, in his view, the war cannot end until his government’s goals – such as destroying Hamas’ military capabilities – have been achieved.
At the end of May, US President Joe Biden surprisingly presented a three-stage plan for a ceasefire in the Gaza war. The plan calls for a temporary ceasefire to be observed during which female, elderly and sick Israeli hostages will be released.
In return, Palestinians imprisoned in Israel would be released. In the next phase, the fighting would then cease permanently and the remaining hostages would be released. In a final phase, the draft would see the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip begin.
The UN Security Council has already spoken out in favor of the proposal and recently adopted a corresponding resolution. Hamas has now put forward a series of proposed changes. But the Israeli government has not yet clearly agreed to the US plan either.
According to a report by Israeli television channel Channel 13, Hamas is also demanding that the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip begin in the first phase and that Israel is not allowed to veto the selection of Palestinian prisoners to be released. “This is the most extreme response Hamas could have given,” the channel quoted an Israeli official as saying. “Under these conditions, it is difficult to start a negotiation.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had already described Hamas’ proposed changes as partly unrealistic on Wednesday in Doha. “Some of the changes are feasible, some are not,” he said after a meeting with his Qatari counterpart Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.
Blinken did not get any more specific. Qatar is determined to “bridge the gap” and bring Israel and Hamas closer to stopping the war, Al Thani said. “We hope that this phase will be as short as possible.” Qatar and the USA, as well as Egypt, are acting as mediators because Israel and Hamas are not negotiating directly with each other.
