- Blinken’s Visit: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to visit Israel to push for a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza
- Negotiation Stalemate: Disagreements persist, particularly over the Israeli military’s presence in Gaza, hindering progress
- Ongoing Conflict: Despite ongoing negotiations, violence continues with significant casualties in Gaza and Israel
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is scheduled to visit Israel shortly in his latest attempt to broker a cease-fire and hostage-release agreement in Gaza.
His eleventh journey to the region since the conflict began in October comes just days after the United States submitted a modified proposal aimed at closing long-standing gaps between the two sides.
The United States and Israel have voiced hope about a solution since discussions resumed in Doha last week, but Hamas claims any progress is an “illusion.
Differences are alleged to include whether Israeli troops will be forced to evacuate entirely from the Gaza Strip, as Hamas demands.
According to a Hamas source, the suggestions call for the IDF to maintain a reduced presence along Gaza’s southern border with Egypt, known as the Philadelphi Corridor.
However, Israeli sources informed the Times of Israel that additional border procedures might compensate for Israel’s pullback from the area during the first phase of the agreement.
In response to an extraordinary strike on southern Israel on October 7, the Israeli military launched an operation in Gaza to crush Hamas, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.
More than 40,000 people have died in Gaza since then, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
A ceasefire arrangement reached in November saw Hamas release 105 hostages in exchange for a week-long truce and the release of approximately 240 Palestinian inmates in Israeli jails. Israel claims 111 hostages are still being held, 39 of whom are thought dead.
US President Joe Biden stated earlier this week that “we are closer than we have ever been” to an agreement.
However, past hope voiced throughout months of on-off negotiations has been misplaced.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a cabinet meeting on Sunday that delicate negotiations were underway to achieve the return of hostages, but that certain standards must be respected for Israel’s security.
“There are things we can be flexible about, and things we can’t, and we stick to them. “We know how to distinguish between the two,” he remarked.
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He also accused Hamas of being “obstinate” in negotiations and advocated for further pressure on the militant group.
A senior Hamas official said, “What we have received from the mediators is very disappointing.” There’s been no progress.”
The original arrangement detailed by President Biden, based on Israel’s 27-May proposal, was to run in three stages:
The first would entail a “full and complete ceasefire” for six weeks, the evacuation of Israeli soldiers from all populated areas of Gaza, and the swap of some hostages – including women, the elderly, and the sick or injured – for Palestinian prisoners detained in Israel.
The second phase would see the release of all remaining living captives, as well as a “permanent end to hostilities”.
The third would mark the beginning of a significant reconstruction plan for Gaza, as well as the return of the remains of dead hostages.
Meanwhile, Gaza’s Hamas-run health authority said Israeli air attacks killed at least 21 people, including six children, on Sunday.
The IDF stated on Sunday that it destroyed rocket launchers used to attack Israel from the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, which has seen fierce fighting in recent weeks, killing 20 Palestinians.
