©Reuters. Palestinians gather at the site of an Israeli attack on a house, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, February 24, 2024. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa
By Dan Williams and Nidal al-Mughrabi
JERUSALEM/CAIRO (Reuters) – Israeli leaders planned to meet on Saturday to hear about possible progress in mediated negotiations on a new truce in Gaza to recover hostages held by Hamas, but Palestinians saw little change in nearly polarized positions. five months into the war.
Israeli delegates met in Paris on Friday with mediators from Qatar, Egypt and the United States who helped put together the only ceasefire so far, in November, under which dozens of Hamas prisoners were freed in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners.
Israeli national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said the delegates, who returned early on Saturday, would brief the war cabinet at an evening meeting after the end of the Jewish Sabbath.
The planning of the briefing “shows that they feel that they have not returned empty-handed,” he told Israeli TV Channel 12. “From the tone of what I have heard in these last hours it will be possible to make progress.”
Hanegbi provided no further details, but appeared to nod when asked whether progress could be made in time for the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which begins around March 10. In past wars, Ramadan was seen as auspicious for ceasefire efforts.
There was no immediate comment from officials in Qatar, Egypt or the United States.
The hostage crisis has rattled Israelis, reeling from the surprise of Hamas’ cross-border rampage on October 7, in which 1,200 people were killed and 253 taken hostage, by Israel’s count.
Thousands of people held a vigil for the hostages in Tel Aviv on Saturday, shortly after an anti-government protest during which police reported five arrests for disorderly conduct.
Hamas has previously conditioned the release of the 130 hostages it still holds in Israel, the release of thousands of jailed Palestinian militants and the suspension of the offensive on Gaza, which medical officials in the enclave say have killed around 30,000 people.
END OF THE GAME
Israel has publicly opposed such a large-scale prisoner release and says any suspension of fighting would be temporary as it aims to dismantle Hamas, an Islamic faction bent on its destruction, by spreading the war to Gaza’s resistance areas.
A Palestinian official briefed on the talks said the Israelis in Paris were “vague” about the end game in Gaza.
“While Israel focuses on trying to turn any deal into a prisoner exchange deal, Hamas insists that any deal must be based on the Israeli occupation’s commitment to end the war and withdraw its forces from the Gaza Strip,” he said. the official declared. he, who asked to remain anonymous, told Reuters.
“This is the priority for Hamas.”
Another Palestinian official indicated that the release of hostages as part of an exchange was not imminent, saying there had been “no discussion about prisoners, neither in terms of categories nor numbers.”
A source briefed on the talks, and who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said the Paris talks had produced an “outline” truce proposal that could eventually lead to a truce.
Hanegbi told Channel 12 that among Israel’s guiding principles for any truce agreement is the provision that all hostages be released, starting with the release of women and children, and that “cannot under any circumstances be interpreted as the end of the war”.
The Israeli army released news of an infantry major’s death in combat on Saturday, bringing its total fighting losses in Gaza to 239. Israel says it has killed around 12,000 Hamas gunmen, effectively halving the faction’s Gaza garrisons.
Hamas believes these figures are exaggerated.
“We are in the middle of negotiations for the release of the hostages. I can’t say what it will lead to. There are those who are dealing with it. It’s about fighting,” said Israeli military chief Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi. troops at a briefing.