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A Hamas leader said Thursday that the group would soon send a delegation to Cairo to “complete ongoing discussions” on a cease-fire deal for the war in the Gaza Strip, raising hopes of progress in the stalled efforts for a truce. The latest cease-fire proposal, which has been forcefully pushed by the Biden administration in recent days, comes after nearly seven devastating months of war. The deal would include a weekslong temporary truce — the exact duration is unclear — and the release of hostages held by Hamas and Palestinian prisoners in Israel. It would also allow the return of civilians to the largely depopulated northern part of Gaza, and enable increased delivery of aid to the territory. Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas’s political wing, said the group was studying the latest proposal from Israel, which includes some Israeli concessions, with a “positive spirit.” A Hamas delegation will go to Egypt soon to seek a deal that “realizes our people’s demands and ends the aggression,” according to a statement by the group.

Persons: Biden, Ismail Haniyeh, ”, “ Locations: Cairo, “, Gaza, Israel, Egypt

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken delivered twin messages to Hamas and Israel on Wednesday, pressing Hamas to accept a cease-fire proposal while at the same time urging Israeli leaders to put off a major ground invasion into the thickly populated southern Gaza city of Rafah. On the last day of a Middle East trip, his seventh visit to the region since the war began in October, Mr. Blinken tried to turn up the pressure on Hamas. “We are determined to get a cease-fire that brings the hostages home and to get it now, and the only reason that that wouldn’t be achieved is because of Hamas,” Mr. Blinken said at the start of a meeting in Tel Aviv with Isaac Herzog, the president of Israel. “There is a proposal on the table, and as we’ve said: No delays, no excuses. The time is now.”The proposed agreement calls for the release of 33 hostages in the initial stage of a cease-fire, and would lead to the release of Palestinian prisoners being held in Israel.

Persons: Antony J, Blinken, “, wouldn’t, ” Mr, Isaac Herzog, Israel, we’ve Organizations: Israel, Mr Locations: Gaza, Rafah, Tel Aviv, Israel

A senior Hamas official said on Wednesday that Hamas did not have 40 living hostages in Gaza who met the criteria for an exchange under a proposed cease-fire agreement with Israel being negotiated. A senior Israeli official said Israel had been relayed Hamas’s claim, and the senior Hamas official said that the group had informed mediators facilitating the negotiations. The Israeli official and the Hamas official requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the negotiations. Israeli officials believe there are about 130 hostages remaining in Gaza, and Israeli intelligence officers have concluded that at least 30 of those have died in captivity. It was not immediately clear if Israel would now demand that young men and soldiers be included among the first 40 released captives.

Persons: Israel Organizations: Hamas, Israeli Locations: Gaza, Israel

☆ Israeli Negotiators Head to Qatar for Cease-Fire Talks, Officials Say
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Adam Rasgon | More About Adam Rasgon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Israeli negotiators were traveling to Qatar on Monday to participate in a new round of in-person talks aimed at achieving a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip and the release of hostages held by Palestinian militants, according to a senior Israeli official and another official briefed on the negotiations. The Israeli delegation’s trip to Doha, Qatar, comes after Israel and Hamas failed to reach an agreement ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which began last week. The Israeli delegation includes the head of Mossad, the foreign intelligence agency; the director of the Shin Bet, the internal security service; and a representative of the Israeli Army, said the Israeli official. For months, Hamas leaders have been publicly calling for a comprehensive cease-fire and complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. Israeli officials have repeatedly rejected the demands and indicated that they would be open to only a temporary pause.

Persons: Shin, Israel Organizations: Palestinian, Israeli Army, Hamas Locations: Qatar, Gaza, Israeli, Doha, Israel

Hamas officials say they will only release the remaining hostages in Gaza, believed to number more than 100, as part of a comprehensive cease-fire. Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, said on Sunday that he would not accept any deal for a permanent cease-fire that left Hamas in control of Gaza. Israeli officials have suggested they might consider a permanent cease-fire if Hamas’s Gaza leadership leave the strip and go into exile, the two diplomats said. Hamas officials have rejected that idea. “Hamas and its leaders are on their land in Gaza,” Husam Badran, a senior Hamas official, said in a text message.

Persons: William J, Burns, Brett McGurk, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s, Husam, Netanyahu, “, Mahmoud Abbas, Abbas Organizations: Qatari, White, Gaza, Hamas, Biden, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, Fatah Locations: Gaza, Europe, Israel, Qatar, Egypt, Western, U.S, Palestinian

Hamas fighters in the northern Gaza Strip fired at least 25 rockets toward a nearby Israeli city on Tuesday, renewing right-wing criticism in Israel of the government’s decision to scale back some military operations in the war. Hamas said in a statement that it had targeted the Israeli city of Netivot, about six miles from the Gaza border. Most of the rockets were either intercepted by Israel’s missile defense system or fell into open areas, and there were no immediate reports of casualties. But the Israeli police said that at least one building had been damaged. The attack highlighted Hamas’s continuing ability to threaten Israeli civilians with rocket fire despite more than 100 days of a devastating Israeli air and ground offensive aimed at destroying the group’s military capabilities.

Organizations: Gaza, Israel’s Locations: Israel, Netivot, Gaza

☆ Qatar says it has brokered a deal between Israel and Hamas to allow medicine to reach hostages.
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( Adam Rasgon | More About Adam Rasgon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Israel and Hamas have reached a deal that would allow medications to be delivered to Israeli hostages in return for additional medicine and aid for Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip, officials said, marking a significant breakthrough in the indirect talks between the warring sides. The agreement was announced on Tuesday by Qatar, who have served as a mediator. A Hamas official, Basem Naim, later confirmed the agreement, and the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said a deal had been reached to send medicine to the hostages. More than 120 hostages have been held in Gaza since Oct. 7, and many have health conditions that require regular medical care, including cancer and diabetes. Their families have grown increasingly concerned as the war entered its fourth month and as hostages released in late November have shared harrowing accounts of their captivity.

Persons: Basem Naim, Benjamin Netanyahu, Majed bin Mohammed al, Ansari Organizations: Hamas, Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Doha Locations: Israel, Gaza, Qatar, France, El Arish, Egypt

Hamas said on Monday that two of the hostages captured on Oct. 7 had been killed in Israeli airstrikes and released images that appeared to show their bodies, but the Israeli military cast doubt on the claim. Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, chief spokesman for the Israeli military, said at a press briefing that at least one of the hostages was not killed by its forces. At the same time, the videos appeared to demonstrate the leverage which Hamas can exert on Israeli society through the hostages. Previous videos released by Hamas about the hostages have omitted or distorted crucial details. She said that Hamas fighters dug her and Mr. Svirsky out but that Mr. Sharabi had been killed.

Persons: Daniel Hagari, “ That’s, ”, “, —, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Yossi Sharabi, Itai Svirsky, Noa Argamani, Admiral Hagari, Argamani, Mia Schem, Svirsky, Sharabi Organizations: Hamas Locations: Israeli

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