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Indirect negotiations continue between the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and Israel, in the Qatari capital, Doha, in conjunction with the ongoing battles throughout the Gaza Strip, and continued pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to conclude an exchange deal.
The ongoing round of negotiations in Doha resumed a few days ago with all its tracks, and moved to the stage of technical meetings, as Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majid Al-Ansari said last Tuesday.
The following is a presentation of the most important contents of the offers submitted, which are currently being negotiated:
Hamas proposals
Hamas said that the basic principles underlying its vision of the negotiation file, which it presented to the mediators in Egypt and Qatar, are based on five main points: a ceasefire, an unconditional return of the displaced, the withdrawal of the Israeli occupation army from Gaza, the entry of aid and relief materials, and reconstruction.
She stressed that these principles and foundations that she presented are considered necessary for the agreement and the prisoner exchange file, and that they will remain biased towards the rights and concerns of the Palestinian people.
Sources spoke to Al Jazeera about the most important provisions of Hamas’ proposal, which according to those sources includes:
A ceasefire in the Gaza Strip in 3 phases, each lasting 42 days.
Hamas stipulated that the occupation forces withdraw from Al-Rashid and Salah Al-Din Streets to allow the return of the displaced to the northern Gaza Strip and the passage of aid.
In exchange for the release of each living female prisoner, she offered to release 50 Palestinian prisoners whom she would specify, with 30 of them being life sentencers.
At the start of the second phase, Hamas stipulated that a permanent ceasefire be declared before any exchange of its captured soldiers.
Beginning the comprehensive reconstruction process for the Gaza Strip and ending the siege with the start of the third phase of the deal.
A source told Al Jazeera that the movement, as usual, presented a complete paper within 3 stages leading to what was called “sustainable calm,” in which it provided full details for the first stage, while providing basic headings for the second and third stages.
Israeli response
Despite multiple rounds of negotiation; Before the negotiation round currently underway in Doha, Israel did not reveal any detailed vision or proposals, and was content only - in what was published at least - with announcing a total rejection of the demands of Hamas and the resistance.
However, the Israeli delegation participating in the Doha negotiations provided - for the first time, at least according to what was announced - sometimes detailed observations regarding the resistance’s demands.
Below are the highlights of the Israeli response presented in the Doha negotiations:
The Israeli response to the launch of the agreement remained in three stages, and provided general answers regarding some of the points contained in Hamas’ proposal, and provided more detailed others regarding the exchange of prisoners.
In its response to Hamas's proposal, Israel rejected a complete withdrawal of its forces from the Gaza Strip.
Israel also rejected a permanent ceasefire, as proposed in the document submitted by Hamas, which stipulated that the start of the second phase coincide with the declaration of a permanent ceasefire.
The Israeli negotiating delegation also refrained from agreeing to an unconditional return of the displaced to their areas. Instead, the Israeli response offered a restricted return of two thousand displaced persons per day to the northern Gaza Strip two weeks after the start of the implementation of the agreement, while Hamas stipulated in the first stage the withdrawal of the occupation forces from the two streets. Al-Rashid and Salah Al-Din, to enable the displaced to return to their areas and facilitate the passage of aid.
The Israeli proposal did not provide any details related to humanitarian aid or ending the siege, while Hamas’ proposal included that the start of the third phase coincide with the start of the comprehensive reconstruction process for the Gaza Strip and the end of the siege.
Prisoner exchange
Here, the Israeli response provides more details regarding Tel Aviv’s vision, demands, and conditions regarding the prisoner exchange clause, but it keeps the ceiling low and far from what was proposed by the Hamas document. Among the most important points contained in the Israeli response are the following:
Demanding the release in the first stage of 40 Israeli detainees alive from all categories, while Hamas offered, in exchange for the release of every female captive soldier alive, to release 50 Palestinian prisoners determined by the movement, including 30 prisoners serving life sentences.
Israel rejected Hamas's request to release 30 life sentencers for every female soldier, and in return, offered to release only 5 to be determined by it.
Israel also chose to maneuver in another part, as it stipulated - in exchange for the release of the Palestinian prisoners who were released as part of the Shalit deal and were subsequently arrested - that the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades - the military wing of the Hamas movement - release two soldiers it held captive before the current war, namely Hadar. Goldin and Shaul Aron.
The Israeli response also included Tel Aviv's right to deport out of Palestine the life-sentenced prisoners who will be released during the deal.
The American proposal
It seems that in the face of the difficulty of negotiations and the wide gap between the two proposals, the mediators are trying to bridge the gap and fill the large gaps in the negotiations, as the United States presented a new proposal, and the official Israeli Broadcasting Corporation quoted some of its details from a senior official - it did not name it - and said that Tel Aviv agreed to it, but Waiting for Hamas' response.
Below are some details of this proposal, according to this official:
The US proposal includes Tel Aviv's commitment not to assassinate senior Hamas leaders if they are exiled outside the Gaza Strip.
The American proposal requires that this Israeli commitment be in exchange for an agreement that includes demilitarizing the Gaza Strip and returning all prisoners detained in Gaza.
The American proposal also includes the withdrawal of Israeli army forces from the Gaza Strip.
The United States is promoting this proposal as part of the phase that follows the deal to release 40 detainees in Gaza in exchange for a 6-week ceasefire.
Source: Al Jazeera