Despite US claims that “final” hostage release and ceasefire deal talks in Doha, Qatar “look positive,” the Hamas terrorist organization on Friday rejected the latest proposal agreed upon by Israel with Qatari, Egyptian and US mediators.
Nevertheless, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement on Saturday night that Israel’s negotiating team “expressed to the Prime Minister cautious optimism regarding the possibility of progress on the deal, in accordance with the updated American proposal (based on the May 27th framework), including components acceptable to Israel.
“It is hoped that the heavy pressure on Hamas by the United States and the mediators will remove its opposition to the American proposal and will lead to a breakthrough in the talks.”
President Joe Biden likewise expressed optimism in a statement from the White House: “I spoke with the ruler of Qatar and the Egyptian president about the great progress made in the Doha talks over the past two days. I am optimistic about reaching a ceasefire agreement in Gaza. We have an opportunity,” he said.
However, senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zahari was far more hoest, saying bluntly in a statement to the AFP news agency that the president’s words “that we are close to a ceasefire agreement are an illusion.”
Hamas has consistently rejected every deal on the table since the initial hostage release and suspension of hostilities last November. During that week-long period, Israel released three incarcerated terrorist prisoners for each hostage freed from Hamas captivity but violated the agreement on the eighth day and has rejected every proposal since. Of the 115 hostages still held by the terror group, intelligence officials have quietly estimated that just 33 remain alive.
Earlier this week a full Israeli delegation was sent to Doha by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for two days of talks (Thursday and Friday) held with the Qatari prime minister, Egyptian intelligence chief and CIA head Bill Burns. The Israeli delegation included Mossad chief David Barnea, Shin Bet head Ronen Bar, IDF Maj. Gen. (res.) Nitzan Alon and senior Netanyahu political adviser Ophir Falk.
Hamas refused to attend the talks and on Friday immediately rejected the deal agreed upon by Israel and the mediators.
“The movement will not accept anything less than the natural return of displaced people and a prisoner exchange deal without the conditions of the occupation,” a senior Hamas source told AFP.
“The occupation’s delegation has set new conditions as part of its strategy to obstruct the process. Among the occupation’s obstructive conditions is the insistence on keeping military forces in the ‘Philadelphi Corridor.’
“Another obstructive condition of the occupation is the demand for the right to veto the names of prisoners and to exile certain prisoners outside of Palestine,” the source added.
Al-Aqsa TV likewise reported the terror group claimed the proposal under discussion “falls short of the presented ceiling.
“We reject the obstructionist policies that only serve the enemy’s agenda and are being practiced at the expense of the blood of our Palestinian people,” Hamas spokesperson Jihad Taha told the news outlet.
Netanyahu: Israel Added No New Conditions to Hostage Release Proposal
“Any agreement must achieve a comprehensive ceasefire, a complete withdrawal from Gaza, the return of displaced people, and reconstruction, along with a prisoner exchange deal,” Hussam Badran, head of the Hamas ‘National Relations Office’ said in a separate statement.
Hamas continues to accuse Netanyahu of adding conditions to the proposal in an attempt to sabotage a deal — a charge the Israeli prime minister has repeatedly debunked.
“The charge that Prime Minister Netanyahu added new conditions to the May 27 proposal is false,” his office said bluntly in response to an article by The New York Times earlier this week.
“Prime Minister Netanyahu’s July 27 letter does not introduce extra conditions and certainly does not contradict or undermine the May 27 proposal. In fact, Hamas is the one that demanded 29 changes to the May 27 proposal, something the Prime Minister refused to do.”
Israel is demanding the immediate release and a list of all living hostages in the first phase of any agreement. In addition, Israel insists on a continued IDF presence in the Philadelphi and Netazarim Corridors, both of which have been used by Hamas to import and transport weapons from Iran. Moreover, Israel maintains the right to screen those who return to northern Gaza to ensure there are no terrorists among them.
Israel is committed to preventing the terror organization from reestablishing itself anywhere in the enclave. Hamas has rebuilt military command and control centers in nearly every location evacuated by the IDF in Gaza since the start of the October 7th war.
It is also believed that Hamas “absolute leader” Yahya Sinwar, who has remaining in hiding in a tunnel deep beneath the streets of Gaza, is holding Israeli captives around him as “life insurance.”
