Israel and Hamas have accused each other of complicating ceasefire efforts, as the two sides move closer to a deal that could end the 14-month-old war in Gaza.
Although Israel and Hamas have expressed optimism about recent progress toward an agreement, sticking points remain over the exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gazaaccording to local officials participating in the talks in Qatar.
On Wednesday, Hamas accused Israel of introducing new conditions regarding its withdrawal from Gaza and the return of displaced people, which the militant group said was delaying the agreement.
The Israeli government, for its part, criticizes Hamas for going back on agreements already concluded. However, both sides said discussions were continuing.
Israeli presence in Gaza in question
The Israeli Minister of Defense, Israel Katz said Wednesday that the “Security of Gaza will remain in the hands” of the Israeli armyduring a visit to the Philadelphia corridor of the Gaza Strip.
He also affirmed that the army “will be able to act in any way to eliminate threats”adding that Israel will create “buffer zones” to protect Israeli communities.
During the October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel, Hamas and other groups took approximately 250 people hostage and took them to Gaza.
A previous truce, reached in November 2023, saw the release of more than 100 hostages, while others were rescued or their remains found over the past year.
Israel claims thataround a hundred hostages remain in Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to have been killed in the attack or died in captivity.
Families of hostages are calling on the Israeli government for an urgent ceasefire before US President-elect Donald Trump takes office.
A step-by-step agreement
Following the return of the Israeli negotiating team from Doha this week, families of hostages held emergency press conference in Tel Aviv, pleading for a complete end to the war.
Shir Siegel, the daughter of Israeli-American Keith Siegel, whose mother was released after more than 50 days in captivity, says “every second is fateful”.
If concluded, the agreement will enter into force in stages and will include a cessation of fighting, an exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners and an increase in aid to the Gaza Stripaccording to Egyptian, American and Hamas officials.
The final phase would include the release of remaining hostages, an end to the war and talks on reconstruction.
Israel's bombing and ground invasion of Gaza killed more than 45,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and childrenaccording to the Gaza Ministry of Health, which does not distinguish between fighters and civilians in its count.
