The Foreign Minister says that Israel “wants an agreement” and says that “it will soon be known” if the Islamist group “wants the same thing”
Jan. 13 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Israel, Gideon Saar, confirmed this Monday “progress” in the indirect negotiations with the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) to achieve a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip that implies the release of those kidnapped in the attacks executed on October 7, 2023.
“Progress has been made. We see some progress in the negotiations,” Saar said during a press conference with his Danish counterpart, Lars Lokke Rasmussen, statements in which he emphasized that “Israel wants an agreement on the hostages.” , after the lack of progress in this regard in recent months.
“Israel is working with our American friends to reach an agreement on the hostages and we will soon know if the other party wants the same,” he said, referring to Hamas, as reported by the Israeli newspaper ‘The Times of Israel’.
Thus, Saar has asserted that the situation “seems much better than before,” although he has declined to “say more than that.” “I am aware that there are families who are sensitive to every word and every phrase (about the negotiations),” he argued, referring to the relatives of the hostages.
The head of the Israeli Foreign Ministry has also noted that the authorities work both with the outgoing United States Administration, headed by Joe Biden, and with the president-elect, Donald Trump, who will take office on January 20. “I hope that in a short period of time we will see things happen, but it still needs to be demonstrated,” he concluded.
For his part, the Israeli Finance Minister, the far-right Bezalel Smotrich, has once again expressed his rejection of any ceasefire in Gaza, which he has described as “a catastrophe for Israel’s national security”, and has added that his party , Religious Zionism, “will not be part” of a pact in this sense.
“We will not be part of a surrender agreement that includes the release of terrorists, stopping the war and dissolving the achievements obtained, achieved with a lot of blood,” he stated through a message published on his account on the social network X.
“It is time to continue with all our might, occupy and cleanse the entire Strip and finally assume control of Hamas’ humanitarian aid, opening the gates of hell in Gaza until Hamas completely surrenders and until all the hostages have returned.” , has argued, in line with his previous statements in favor of maintaining the offensive and occupying the enclave.
PROPOSAL SIMILAR TO THE ONE OF MAY 2024
According to information collected by the Israeli channel Channel 12, the negotiations have made progress in the last few hours, with the main details agreed upon in the absence of approval from Hamas, without the Islamist group having commented on the matter for now.
In this sense, a person involved in the negotiations, which are taking place in Qatar, has told Army Radio that “there is cautious progress.” “It seems that the direction is positive,” he maintained, a position confirmed by official Israeli sources cited by Channel 13, who have indicated that “if Hamas responds soon, all the details can be finalized in a matter of days.”
The proposal would be similar to the one discussed in May 2024, which contemplated a three-stage agreement in which “humanitarian” cases, that is, women, children and the sick, would be released at first. Subsequently, starting on the sixteenth day of the ceasefire, the release of men of military age would be discussed, after which there would be a third stage on governance and reconstruction of Gaza.
The Israeli Army launched an offensive against the enclave after the aforementioned attacks on October 7, 2023, which left some 1,200 dead and nearly 250 kidnapped. The Gazan authorities, controlled by Hamas, have reported nearly 46,600 deaths to date, in addition to more than 800 Palestinians killed in the West Bank and East Jerusalem at the hands of Israeli forces or in attacks by settlers.
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