The United States presented a revised proposal for a Gaza ceasefire deal on Friday after two days of negotiations in Doha, but Hamas immediately rejected Israeli “new conditions” as diplomatic pressure mounts to avoid a regional military escalation.
In a joint statement, the mediating countries – the United States, Qatar and Egypt – announced that the talks will resume in Cairo next week, after the United States presented a new proposal in Doha on Friday, aimed at “filling the remaining gaps” with a view to “implementing” an agreement on a ceasefire.
But two Hamas officials subsequently told AFP that the movement rejected “new conditions” from Israel.
In the besieged Gaza Strip, the war triggered by Hamas’ unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7 continues unabated, and violence continues in the occupied West Bank, where a deadly attack by Jewish settlers has sparked outrage, including in Israel.
After more than ten months of conflict, diplomacy is also being activated to prevent a response from Iran and its allies, including Hezbollah, to the assassination, attributed to Israel, of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on July 31 in Tehran, and to the death the day before of the military leader of the Lebanese Islamist movement in an Israeli strike near Beirut.
US President Joe Biden, whose country is Israel’s main ally, said Friday that an agreement had “never been closer” for a ceasefire in Gaza. He said a truce could help avoid Iranian retaliation.
“We are not there yet,” the American president said, judging however that a compromise was “much closer than three days ago.”
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty also said that a ceasefire in Gaza was “key” to preventing “total war” in the region.
Receiving his counterparts, British David Lammy and French Stéphane Séjourné, in Jerusalem, the head of diplomacy Israel Katz told him that in the event of an attack on Tehran, his country expects its allies “to join Israel, not only to defend it but also to attack important targets in Iran.”
Mr. Séjourné considered it “inappropriate to talk about a response and preparation of an Israeli response, even defensive, while we are working towards a diplomatic agreement.”
Hezbollah tunnels?
In Lebanon, Hezbollah released a video — the authenticity of which AFP could not verify — showing its members moving through large, lit tunnels dug into the rock, where trucks appear to be transporting massive missiles. In one image, a missile launcher is aimed skyward through a hatch.
In Doha, Hamas did not participate in the negotiations that brought together the heads of American and Israeli intelligence with the mediators, but the movement is in regular contact with the mediators.
Among the Israeli “new conditions” rejected by Hamas, one of its leaders notably cited the “maintenance of Israeli troops” along the Gaza border with Egypt and “a right of veto” on the release of certain prisoners.
The talks are based on a plan announced on May 31 by Joe Biden, which provides in a first phase a six-week truce accompanied by an Israeli withdrawal from densely populated areas of Gaza and the release of Israeli hostages taken to Gaza on October 7, in exchange for that of Palestinian prisoners.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly said he wants to continue the war until the destruction of Hamas, which seized power in Gaza in 2007 and is considered a terrorist organization by Israel, the United States and the European Union.
Gaza Strip still under bombardment –
The Hamas attack on October 7 resulted in the deaths of 1,198 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli data. Of the 251 people kidnapped that day, 111 are still being held in Gaza, including 39 declared dead by the army.
The Israeli retaliatory offensive in Gaza has left at least 40,005 dead, according to Hamas’ health ministry, which does not provide details on the number of civilians and fighters killed.
On Friday, witnesses reported Israeli strikes on Palestinian territory, where the Israeli army said it had “eliminated terrorists” and issued new evacuation orders in the Khan Younis region (south).
AFPTV footage showed Palestinians streaming into the city’s Nasser hospital after a strike, carrying bloodied wounded and body bags.
“Burn, kill”
Violence is also flaring in the West Bank, a Palestinian territory occupied by Israel since 1967.
On Thursday evening, dozens of Israeli settlers set fire to buildings and vehicles and threw Molotov cocktails in the northern village of Jit, according to the army. One of them was arrested.
The West Bank-based Palestinian Authority said one Palestinian was shot dead in the attack, denouncing “state terrorism.”
“They were armed with knives, a machine gun and a silencer. Their goal was clear: to burn, kill and destroy,” Hassan Arman told AFP in Jit.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog “condemned” the attack, which was also strongly condemned internationally.
The UN, which considers Israeli colonization in the West Bank illegal, has pointed out “the impunity enjoyed by the perpetrators of such serious violations.” The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, will propose sanctions against Israeli officials.