Al-Qassam Brigades hand over Israeli prisoners during the previous truce in Gaza (Al-Jazeera)
The head of the political bureau of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), Ismail Haniyeh, said that the movement received the proposal of the Paris meeting for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, and will study it to respond to it. On the other hand, the opinions of Israeli party leaders were divided about concluding a new deal to exchange prisoners with the Palestinian resistance.
Haniyeh added in a statement on Tuesday, “The movement’s priority is to end the Israeli military attack and the complete withdrawal of the occupation forces from Gaza,” adding that Hamas is “open to all ideas that would lead to ending the aggression against Gaza and providing shelter for the displaced.”
He also clarified that the movement is open to discussing any initiative requiring reconstruction and implementing a serious prisoner exchange process that guarantees the freedom of Palestinian prisoners. He reported that he received an invitation to visit Cairo to discuss the framework agreement issued by the Paris meeting and the requirements for its implementation in a way that achieves the interests of the Palestinian people.
Haniyeh appreciated the role of Qatar and Egypt in reaching a sustainable ceasefire agreement in Gaza on the path to ending the aggression, and appreciated South Africa’s position in filing the lawsuit against Israel in the International Court of Justice.
For his part, Ziad Al-Nakhalah, Secretary-General of the Islamic Jihad Movement, affirmed the movement’s firm position not to engage in any understandings, without guaranteeing a comprehensive ceasefire, the withdrawal of the occupation forces, ensuring reconstruction, and achieving a clear political solution that guarantees the rights of the Palestinian people.
Negotiations progress
In a related context, Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani said that there is progress in negotiations to reach a prisoner exchange deal between Hamas and Israel, and stressed that it is the only opportunity available to calm the situation in Gaza.
The Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister added in statements he made in Washington, “I think at the present time I can say that the progress we have achieved in the past two weeks puts us in a better position than we were weeks ago... We saw that the whole process was working well in November.” The last second, which led to the release of 109 hostages... Unfortunately, this operation collapsed at that time... and the intensity of the war increased, making the situation more complicated.”
Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman stressed that Qatar has no influence on any party regarding the ongoing negotiations regarding the hostage exchange deal, stressing that Qatar’s role is to mediate to reach a negotiated solution.
He said, "Now our primary role as mediators is to do what we can to reach a negotiated solution that will return the prisoners safely to their homes and also lead to an end to the bombing of Gaza and the killing of civilians. We see the numbers rising tragically. We see that what is happening in Gaza does not lead to the return of the hostages." .
On Monday, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby announced, during an interview with MSNBC, that negotiations aimed at reaching an agreement to release Israeli prisoners detained in the Gaza Strip led to “a framework that could lead to an agreement.” ultimate".
Conflicting statements
On the other hand, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that Israel will not withdraw its forces from the Gaza Strip, or release thousands of Palestinian prisoners whom he described as “terrorists.”
Netanyahu added that his government will not end this war without achieving all its goals, which are eliminating the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), returning all detainees, and ensuring that Gaza does not pose a threat to Israel anymore, as he put it.
He pointed out that "he hears statements about all kinds of deals, so I want to make clear: We will not end this war with less than achieving all its goals and without absolute victory."
The Israeli Mini-Ministerial Council for Security and Political Affairs (Cabinet) is scheduled to hold a session the day after tomorrow, Thursday, to discuss a proposal for a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas.
For his part, the far-right Israeli Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, said that any illegal deal would lead to the dissolution of the government, as he put it.
Channel 12 also quoted the far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich that what is being circulated about stopping the war is a loss of what he called the achievements achieved by the Israeli army’s warriors with their blood, according to his description.
Smotrich said that this bad deal, as he described it, would allow Hamas to regain control of the region, stressing that he would not accept that.
In the opposition camp, the head of the "Israel Our Home" party, Avigdor Lieberman, said that Netanyahu is running the country based on what he called coalition considerations, and that the only thing he cares about is maintaining the government coalition.
He added that the two ministers in the Israeli War Council, Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, give legitimacy to Netanyahu to evade talking about the day after the war.
As for the leader of the Israeli opposition, Yair Lapid, he said that the opposition will give the government a safety net for every prisoner exchange deal that is reached.
“We have to return the kidnapped people to their homes, otherwise something very fundamental will collapse in our relationship with each other, in the relationship between a people and their country, and certainly in the essence of trust between citizens and the government,” Lapid said.
Tel Aviv estimates that there are about 136 Israeli prisoners in Gaza, while it holds at least 8,800 Palestinians in its prisons, according to official sources from both parties.
Since October 7, 2023, the Israeli occupation army has been waging a devastating war on the Gaza Strip, which, as of Tuesday, left 26,751 martyrs and 65,636 injured, most of them children and women, according to the Palestinian authorities, and caused massive destruction and an unprecedented humanitarian disaster, according to the United Nations. United.
Source: Al Jazeera + agencies