Along with the United States and Egypt, Qatar had participated for months in mediation efforts to end the devastating war in the Gaza Strip, triggered on October 7, 2023 by an attack by Palestinian Hamas against Israel. In vain.
The only truce in this war saw the light of day at the end of November 2023. It lasted a week and allowed the release of hostages kidnapped during the October 7 attack and taken to Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
At the end of October, “during the last (negotiations) to try to reach an agreement, Qatar informed the parties that it intended to suspend its mediation efforts between Hamas and Israel if an agreement was not reached during this round “, Qatar Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Majed Al Ansari said in a statement.
“Qatar will take them back when the parties show will and seriousness” to end hostilities, he added, while Hamas and Israel accuse each other of blocking any agreement.
The spokesperson also rejected reports from a diplomatic source who had suggested that Qatar might close the Hamas office in Doha.
“The main objective of the office in Qatar is to be a channel of communication between the parties involved, and this channel has helped achieve a ceasefire” previously, such as in November 2023, he said.
Israelis “very worried” about the fate of the hostages
The diplomatic source had previously claimed that the Qataris had “informed the Israelis and Hamas that as long as the two camps refuse to negotiate an agreement in good faith, they will not be able to continue playing the role of mediator”.
They “informed the American Administration that they would be ready to engage again in mediation when the two parties […] will demonstrate a sincere desire to return to the negotiating table,” she added.
At a rally in Tel Aviv calling for the release of the hostages, Ruti Lior, a psychotherapist, said she was “very worried” after the Qatari decision. “This is further proof that these agreements are being sabotaged. »
“How many more tears must be shed and how much blood must be shed before someone takes our children home? “, exclaimed Nina Wenkert, the mother of a hostage.
No respite in Gaza
Meanwhile, the war continues unabated in Gaza, where some 2.4 million residents are under siege and living in dire conditions according to the UN.
On Saturday, 14 Palestinians died in Israeli strikes on sites housing displaced people in Gaza City (north) and Khan Younes (south), according to Civil Defense.
“Enough, these massacres, these martyrs and these wars! How much longer will this last? Enough ! We are exhausted,” says Oum Mohammad, a displaced person living in a tent near a hospital in Deir al-Balah (center), after Israeli raids nearby.
The attack by the Islamist movement Hamas on October 7, 2023 resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mainly civilians, according to an AFP count based on official Israeli data, including hostages killed or died in captivity.
That day, 251 people were kidnapped. In total, 97 remain hostages in Gaza, including 34 declared dead by the army.
The Israeli retaliatory offensive left 43,552 people dead in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to figures from the Hamas Health Ministry.
On Saturday, the UN warned in a report that “starvation thresholds may already have been crossed or will be crossed in the near future” in Gaza.
A report deemed “biased” by Israel.
“We won’t stop […] It’s about bringing back the hostages […] “, declared Israeli Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi during a trip to Jabalia, in the north of Gaza.
33 dead in Lebanon
In support of Hamas, Lebanese Hezbollah opened a front against Israel on October 8, 2023. After nearly a year of cross-border shooting, the situation degenerated into open war on September 23.
Since then, the Israeli army has been carrying out a campaign of intense strikes in Lebanon, mainly against Hezbollah strongholds, and since September 30 a ground offensive in the south of the country, bordering northern Israel.
Israel says it wants to neutralize Hezbollah in the border regions of southern Lebanon to allow the return home of 60,000 residents of northern Israel displaced by the movement’s fire.
On Saturday, 20 people were killed in Israeli strikes in eastern Lebanon and 13 others, including seven rescue workers affiliated with Hezbollah and its ally Amal, in raids in the south of the country, according to the Health Ministry.
Hezbollah claimed responsibility for rocket attacks against northern Israel.
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