The Hamas terrorist organization refused to address Israel’s demand to receive a list of live hostages and how many Palestinian prisoners Jerusalem should release for each hostage, as was discussed in negotiations advanced in Paris last week.
As an Israeli official told The Times of Israel, the intransigence of the extremists forced the Israeli government to stop sending the delegation of negotiators that was ready to visit Cairo today with the aim of advancing a possible agreement for the release of the kidnapped and a truce in Gaza.
130 hostages remain in captivity according to Israel, a figure that includes 31 presumed dead, of the 250 kidnapped by the terrorist group during the October 7 attack in which around 1,200 people died.
Despite the points of disagreement, negotiations continue, with delegations from Hamas, Qatar and the United States arriving today in the Egyptian capital.
Hamas envoys have to rule on the proposal outlined in Paris at the end of January, said a source close to the Palestinian group. This proposal from the mediating countries – Qatar, the United States and Egypt – is based on a six-week pause in fighting and the release of 42 hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israel.
The goal is to reach a truce before the start of Ramadan, the Muslim fasting month, which will begin on March 10 or 11.
Palestinian sources confirmed to EFE the arrival of representatives from Qatar and the United States, as well as a Hamas negotiating team, although they stated that it is headed by the number two of that Palestinian organization, Jalil al Hayya, and not by the leader of the Hamas political bureau Ismail Haniyeh, as another Palestinian source who also requested anonymity had previously said.
So far, it has not been possible to confirm the presence of an Israeli delegation, despite the fact that “high-level” Egyptian sources, cited by the Al Qahera News television channel, had assured that the new round of talks in Cairo would have the participation of “all parties”.
The Al Qahera News network, close to the Egyptian Intelligence services, had assured the achievement of “remarkable progress” in the talks that took place last week in Doha. They also stated that Egypt, together with Qatar and the US, “is striving to reach a fair agreement” before Ramadan.
Hamas insists that a temporary truce be accompanied by an agreement for a cessation of hostilities in a second phase, which Israel opposes, determined to continue its ground offensive in Rafah, a town at the southern end of the Strip and on the border with Egypt. where more than 1.4 million displaced people are crowded together.
Since the war began, Israel and Hamas only reached a one-week ceasefire agreement in late November, which allowed the release of 105 hostages in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners.
More than 30,200 people have died since the start of the Israeli military offensive against the Gaza Strip, which began following the Hamas terrorist attacks against Israel on October 7, in which around 1,200 people died.
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