A ceasefire proposal in the Gaza Strip was presented to Hamas, providing for a cessation of hostilities for 40 days and a release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the release of Israeli hostages, declared this Monday, April 29 British Foreign Minister David Cameron addresses a meeting of the World Economic Forum in Riyadh. Here’s what we know.
Months of fruitless discussions
A meeting is to be held this Monday in Cairo between representatives of Egypt and Qatar, two of the mediating countries with the United States, and Hamas, which must give its response to this proposal negotiated between Israel and Egypt, after months of fruitless discussions.
At the same time, Antony Blinken stopped off in Saudi Arabia before heading to Israel on Tuesday, as part of a new tour of the Middle East intended to promote a truce in the Palestinian territory, besieged and plunged into a major humanitarian crisis.
The head of American diplomacy expressed the hope of seeing Hamas accept a truce proposal which he described as“extraordinarily generous on the part of Israel”. “They have to make a decision, and they have to do it quickly […] I hope they make the right decision”he added.
Antony Blinken also reiterated his country’s opposition to an Israeli offensive on the overcrowded town of Rafah, in the south of the Gaza Strip, which has become a huge refugee camp housing nearly a million and a half Palestinians in poor conditions. catastrophic health conditions.
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According to doctors and Civil Defense, Israeli strikes on several houses left 22 dead overnight in this City, which is bombarded daily.
A pending decision
Egypt claimed to have “good hope” in a truce, believing that the proposal on the table “attempted to show moderation”. “It is too early to speak of a positive atmosphere in the negotiations”declared for his part to theAFP Zaher Jabareen, a member of the Hamas politburo and negotiating team.
“The movement has received the Israeli response and is in a consultation phase to respond”he added, reiterating the demands of the Islamist movement, starting with a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, a hypothesis that Israel has always refused to consider.
“The possibility of success or failure will be determined by the ability to reach a decision on a permanent ceasefire, an (Israeli) withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, the return of the displaced, a clear timetable for the start of reconstruction and an exchange agreement that removes all injustice towards Palestinian detainees, men and women”he said.
What conditions for the release of hostages?
According to media reports, the Israeli war cabinet initially demanded the release of 40 hostages held in Gaza since the start of the war on October 7, before authorizing negotiators to lower this number.
American news site Axios indicated that Israel was demanding the release, on humanitarian grounds, of women, civilians or soldiers, and men over 50 or in poor health. According to Axios, Hamas claims that only 20 hostages meet these criteria. The site adds that the number of days of truce would be equal to that of the hostages released.
A call to the United States
In addition to Rafah, bombings targeted the center of the Gaza Strip as well as Gaza City in the north on Monday. Sunday in Riyadh, the president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, also called on Washington to prevent Israel from launching an offensive against Rafah. “America is the only country capable of stopping Israel from committing this crime”did he declare.
“If there is an agreement (truce), we will suspend the operation in Rafah”however, declared Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz on Saturday to the Israeli channel N12. “If there is a possibility of reaching an agreement, we will do it”he added.
The war was sparked on October 7 when Hamas commandos infiltrated from Gaza carried out an unprecedented attack in southern Israel, resulting in the deaths of 1,170 people, mainly civilians, according to a report by theAFP established from official Israeli data. More than 250 people have been kidnapped and 129 remain captive in Gaza, 34 of whom have died according to Israeli officials.
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In retaliation, Israel vowed to annihilate Hamas, in power in Gaza since 2007, which it considers, like the United States and the European Union, to be a terrorist organization. Its offensive in Gaza left 34,488 dead, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas Ministry of Health, which counted 34 dead in 24 hours on Monday.
