An Israeli delegation traveled to Qatar after a new Hamas proposal earlier this week sparked renewed hope of a truce agreement as fighting continues to intensify in Gaza.
Israeli negotiators, led by spy chief David Barnea, met with mediators in Doha on Friday, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office. Negotiations were expected to resume next week, the office said, when another negotiating team would be sent to Qatar.
The office added that there are still “gaps between the parties” in their positions.
The latest development came after Hamas said on Wednesday it had presented new “ideas” to Qatari, Egyptian and Turkish mediators on how to reach a ceasefire and a captive exchange agreement to defuse the conflict. nine months.
At least 38,011 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s war in Gaza, which began after a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7 that killed at least 1,139 people, according to an Al Jazeera tally based on Israeli statistics.
While the details of Hamas’ latest proposal were not immediately clear, a U.S. official said Thursday that it contained a substantial change from the group’s previous position. The official, in a conference call with reporters, described the update as “advancement”, but warned that there are still obstacles.
On Friday, Hamas spokesman Jihad Taha said that the group’s latest proposals “received a positive response from mediators”, adding that “the official Israeli position is not yet clear”, according to the media agency. Associated Press news.
Both Israel and Hamas are under increasing pressure to reach a deal, but negotiations around a United Nations-backed plan outlined by US President Joe Biden in May have stalled in recent weeks.
A major hurdle for Hamas has been whether Israel would resume fighting after the dozens of Israeli prisoners still held by the group were released. However, despite repeated US claims that Israel supported the plan, Netanyahu repeatedly said the war would not end until Hamas was “eradicated.”
In a conference call with Biden on Thursday, Netanyahu again said the war would only end with Israel “achieving all of its objectives.”
Fighting continues in Gaza
Despite the latest diplomatic unrest, fighting continued to intensify in Gaza on Friday, with Israeli forces focusing their attacks on the southern cities of Khan Younis and Rafah and northern Gaza City.
At least 10 bodies were taken to Nasser Hospital following attacks in the two southern cities, hospital officials told Al Jazeera correspondent Tareq Abu Azzoum.
He also reported “relentless” attacks in the Shujayea neighborhood of Gaza City, where he said the Israeli military has been “demolishing entire blocks.”
Meanwhile, the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, claimed that its fighters killed 10 Israeli soldiers in an ambush in Shujayea. Israel’s military did not immediately comment on the claim.
Tensions remained high around the Lebanon-Israel border, where increased fighting between Hezbollah and the Israeli military continued to fuel concerns about a broader escalation. The Lebanese group said it targeted several Israeli military positions near the border on Friday.
Hezbollah later said in a statement that leader Hassan Nasrallah met with a Hamas delegation to discuss “the latest developments in negotiations” and “political and security developments” in Gaza and the region.
The fighting in Gaza has uprooted about 90 percent of Gaza’s population, forcing many to live in unsanitary conditions with little access to health care or other help. Almost 500,000 people face “catastrophic” hunger in the enclave, according to the United Nations.
On Friday, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and European Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarcic warned that the Israeli army’s orders this week for more than 250,000 Palestinians to evacuate east of Khan Younis they would only further inflame the humanitarian catastrophe.
“This evacuation decision will certainly worsen overcrowding and cause severe shortages in the already overburdened remaining hospitals at a time when access to emergency medical care is critical,” the two wrote in a joint statement, adding that the forced evacuations are creating “a humanitarian crisis within a crisis”.
“A ceasefire is even more important now and would make possible an increase in humanitarian assistance to Gaza, as well as the release of all hostages,” they said.
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
