Israel Negotiates But Netanyahu Rejects Gaza Ceasefire | Conversations in Egypt

Israel’s attack on the Gaza Strip provoked 20,000 people have died since October 7The Islamic Movement declared Hamas This Wednesday coincides with the visit of its leader Egypt To discuss a new ceasefire in the devastated Palestinian territories.

Israeli bombings and ground wars have not stopped despite calls to avoid civilian casualties in Gaza.

Israel vows to “destroy” HamasIt has ruled the narrow Palestinian territory since 2007. They killed around 1,140 people on October 7 in response to an attack by Islamist militants against their territory.The majority of civilians, according to an AFP agency count based on the latest official Israeli statistics.

During the attack, Hamas and other armed groups They kidnapped 250 people, 129 of whom are in Gaza. According to Israeli officials.

Hamas has announced that 20,000 people have been killed by Israeli military operations in Gaza so far. including 8,000 children and 6,000 women.

The territory’s health ministry indicated that “at least 30 people” died this Wednesday night in an Israeli bombardment that hit two houses in the south of the Strip, east of Khan Yunis near the European hospital.

The bombing halted only during a week-long ceasefire that allowed the release of 105 hostages held by Hamas in exchange for 240 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.

The cease-fire ended on December 1, and since then international pressure has continued to reach a new cease-fire that would allow more hostages to be released and more aid to flow into the region.

“We will continue the war”

But Israel rules out any ceasefire before the “eradication” of Hamas, which is classified as a terrorist organization by the US, EU and Israel.

“We will continue the war until the end. It will continue until Hamas is eliminated, until victory. Those who think we will stop are disconnected from the truth,” the Israeli prime minister insisted. Benjamin Netanyahu.

The head of Hamas in Gaza said that any exchange between Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners would require “a complete cease-fire and the withdrawal of the Israeli army of occupation.”

Chairman of the Palestinian Islamic Committee, Qatar-based Ismail Haniyeh arrived in Egypt this Wednesday to take part in ceasefire talks. along with the country’s officials who helped mediate the first cease-fire.

In the meeting, several projects were discussed vizincluding a one-week ceasefire in exchange for Hamas releasing 40 Israeli prisoners, including women, children and non-military men; Palestinian sources in Cairo told EFE and AFP on condition of anonymity.

According to an informant, after putting the proposals and conditions of Hamas and Israel on the table, the head of the Islamic Group’s political office made it clear that he would present these options to Yahya Sinwar, the head of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and Saleh. Al Aroori, the organization’s vice president, said, “Because they are the ones who make the decisions of this ceasefire” and he is not.

On the other hand, an informed security source, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, told EFE that the development of the meeting was “positive” and that “serious steps were reached to reach an agreement to stop the attacks on Israel”. Gaza” and proposals for a prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas.

In this sense, he said the Hamas delegation had shown “flexibility” regarding the Egyptian proposal for a new ceasefire and the exchange of prisoners under conditions “very similar” to the previous ceasefire, which was extended three times in a row.

According to this security source, Egypt made a major effort in mediation to persuade both sides to “return to the ceasefire and cease attacks” despite indicating that the pause in the case could last “more than 4 days”.

According to a source in Islamic Jihad, another Palestinian Islamist movement aligned with Hamas, the organization’s leader, Ziad al-Naqala, will also travel to Cairo next week.

According to the Axios news website, David Barnea, the head of the Israeli Mossad intelligence service, discussed the hostage release of Qatari Prime Minister Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and CIA Director Bill Burns in Europe. Agreement.

A source close to the talks told AFP that “talks are continuing” after “a constructive meeting” in Warsaw.

John Kirby, a spokesman for the U.S. National Security Council, announced Wednesday that the talks were “very serious.”

Humanitarian crisis

Negotiations are also ongoing at the UN. From Monday, The Security Council failed to adopt a resolution to expedite humanitarian aid to Gaza.

The vote has been postponed twice and council members are looking for a suitable formula to avoid a veto by Israel’s main ally, the United States.

The UN’s highest body postponed the vote until Thursday “to give more time for diplomacy,” said the body’s acting president, Jose Javier de la Casca.

Meanwhile, Israel continues to bombard Gaza. “We were woken up by a huge explosion,” Samar Abu Luli, a resident of the Shabura refugee camp south of the enclave, told AFPTV.

“We managed to escape by a miracle […]. But where to go? No place, no school, no mosque, no hospital, no hospital. “Everything is destroyed,” he continued.

Israel’s military said on Wednesday it had discovered a network of tunnels used by Hamas leaders. One of its objectives is to destroy these passages.

The Palestinian Territory is facing a deep humanitarian crisis. Most of its hospitals are out of service and 85% of its population, or 1.9 million people, have fled the devastation in the north and sought refuge in the south.

According to a report by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, half of the population suffers from acute or severe hunger.