Israel and Hamas accuse each other of hindering negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza

Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas accused each other on Wednesday of blocking indirect negotiations on an agreement in Gaza where the two camps have been engaged in a war for more than a year. In a statement, Hamas accused Israel of posing “new conditions” in the ongoing discussions in Doha.

“The (Israeli) occupation imposed new conditions, regarding the withdrawal (of its troops from the Gaza Strip), the ceasefire, the prisoners (hostages held in Gaza and Palestinians held by Israel) and the return displaced people, which postponed the conclusion of an agreement”affirmed the movement. Israel responded a few minutes later, in turn accusing Hamas of “pose new obstacles in the negotiations”.

“The terrorist organization Hamas is lying once again, backtracking on points that were agreed upon, and continuing to pose new obstacles in the negotiations”indicated the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Negotiation in progress

The war in the Gaza Strip was triggered by an unprecedented Hamas attack on October 7, 2023 which resulted in the deaths of more than 1,200 people on the Israeli side, the majority civilians, according to an AFP count based on official Israeli figures. That day, 251 Israelis were kidnapped. Among them, 96 remain hostages in Gaza, including 34 declared dead by the army.

More than 45,000 Palestinians, the majority civilians, were killed in the Israeli military campaign carried out in Gaza in retaliation for the Hamas attack, according to data from the Hamas government's Ministry of Health, deemed reliable by the UN.

Even though Hamas has indicated that “negotiations for a ceasefire and an exchange of prisoners” were “still underway in Doha with the mediation of Qatar and Egypt”these statements contrast with the optimism displayed in recent days by both camps. Benjamin Netanyahu's office confirmed progress on Tuesday after the return to Israel of negotiators sent to Doha.

No truce since November 2023

Hamas and two other Palestinian groups, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, said last week that a ceasefire agreement was “closer than ever” if Israel did not impose new conditions. Despite intense diplomatic efforts, no truce has been concluded between Israel and Hamas since that of a week at the end of November 2023.

Among the main sticking points are the permanent nature of a ceasefire and the governance of the Gaza Strip after the war. Benjamin Netanyahu said last week in an interview with Wall Street Journal that he was not going “agree to end the war before Hamas withdraws” from the Gaza Strip, from where the Palestinian movement launched its attack on October 7. Israel will not “not leave him in power in Gaza, 50 kilometers from Tel Aviv (a city in central Israel). It won't happen.”he insisted.