'Breakthroughs’ were made on Sunday night in Doha, Qatar, with negotiations for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza “close” to an agreement, according to sources close to the matter quoted by Reuters.
This information was revealed by the agency after discussions between Israeli intelligence officials, Donald Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, and the Prime Minister of Qatar, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abderrahmane al-Thani. A final draft ceasefire and prisoner release agreement was then sent to Israel and Hamas for approval, according to Reuters.
However, Israeli officials said late this morning that Tel Aviv had still not received the proposed agreement, the agency added. For his part, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Monday that Israel is "working hard" to reach a deal that would facilitate the release of dozens of hostages held captive in Gaza.
‘Progress’
"There has been progress in the negotiations for the release of the hostages. Israel really wants to release the hostages and is working hard to secure a deal," Saar said at a joint press conference with his visiting Danish counterpart Lars Lokke Rasmussen.
The previous day, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had discussed ‘progress’ in the negotiations with outgoing US President Joe Biden, according to a statement from his office. The Prime Minister held a meeting in Jerusalem in the presence of Witkoff, a representative of the outgoing US administration, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz and Israeli security officials.
In the run-up to Donald Trump's inauguration on 20 January, Joe Biden reported on Thursday that ‘real progress’ had been made in the negotiations.
For his part, Donald Trump recently promised the region ‘hell’ if the hostages were not released before his return to power.
‘Disaster’
In Israel, this announcement was followed by an outcry from within the ruling coalition, the most right-wing in the country's history. ‘The proposed exchange agreement includes more bodies than kidnapped people alive and must be rejected,’ denounced MP Moshe Saadeh, a member of Netanyahu's Likud party.
Meanwhile, Far-Right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich condemned the agreement as ‘a disaster for Israel's national security’.
‘We will not participate in a surrender agreement that includes the release of high-ranking terrorists, an end to the war and the squandering of progress made,’ Smotrich threatened.
‘It is time to occupy the Gaza Strip, control aid and open the gates of hell until Hamas surrenders and the abductees are brought back,’ he added.
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