TEL AVIV: Mediators are making progress on an agreement for a weekslong cease-fire between Israel and Hamas and the release of dozens of hostages held in Gaza as well as Palestinians imprisoned by Israel, Israeli media reported Sunday.Israel’s War Cabinet met to discuss the proposal late Saturday, but there was no official word on what they had decided. Several Israeli media outlets, citing unnamed officials, said it tacitly approved the deal and that Israel would send a delegation to Qatar for further discussions.Hamas says it has not yet been involved in the latest proposal developed by the United States, Egypt and Qatar, but the reported outline largely matches its earlier demands for the first phase of a truce. Hamas’ top political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, was in Cairo last week.Israel is meanwhile developing plans for expanding its offensive to the southernmost city of Rafah, on the Gaza-Egypt border, where more than half the territory’s population of 2.3 million have sought refuge in squalid tent camps, packed apartments and overflowing shelters. Aid groups have warned of a catastrophe and the U.S. and other allies of Israel have said it must avoid harming civilians.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he’ll convene the Cabinet this week to “approve the operational plans for action in Rafah,” including the evacuation of civilians.Heavy fighting is still underway in parts of northern Gaza, the first target of the offensive, where the extent of the destruction is staggering. Residents have reported days of heavy fighting in the Zaytoun neighborhood of Gaza City, which continued into Sunday morning.“We’re trapped, unable to move because of the heavy bombardment,” said Ayman Abu Awad, a resident of the area.He said starving residents have been forced to eat animal fodder and to search for food in demolished buildings. Northern Gaza has been largely cut off from aid deliveries since the start of the war, and the U.N.’s World Food Program suspended deliveries last week.Toward a limited cease-fire and hostage releaseA senior official from Egypt, which along with Qatar is a mediator between Israel and the Hamas militant group, said Saturday that the draft cease-fire deal includes the release of up to 40 women and older hostages in return for up to 300 Palestinian prisoners, mostly women, minors and older people.The Egyptian official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations, said the proposed six-week pause in fighting would include allowing hundreds of trucks to bring desperately needed aid into Gaza every day, including the northern half of the besieged territory. He said that both sides agreed to continue negotiations during the pause for further releases and a permanent cease-fire.The prime minister’s office did not respond to a request for comment on the War Cabinet’s discussions or the Israeli media reports.Negotiators face an unofficial deadline of the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan around March 10, a period that often sees heightened Israeli-Palestinian tensions.Hamas has said it will not release all of the remaining hostages until Israel ends its offensive and withdraws its forces from the territory, and is also demanding the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, including senior militants — conditions Netanyahu has vehemently rejected.But an earlier proposal from Hamas outlined an initial phase that resembles the reported draft agreement, indicating the two sides might be able to converge on a temporary cease-fire.
Source link
