A senior Israeli official announced on Tuesday that Israel has pulled off its negotiators from Doha, believing that mediated discussions on a Gaza truce were “at a dead end” because of demands from Hamas.
Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas in Gaza, is allegedly undermining diplomatic efforts “as part of a wider effort to inflame this war over Ramadan,” according to the source, who is close to the Mossad spymaster presiding over the negotiations.
Under the direction of Qatar and Egypt, the warring parties had intensified their discussions on a six-week postponement of Israel’s attack in exchange for the possible release of forty of the 130 captives that the Palestinian terrorist organization still held in Gaza.
Hamas has attempted to use any agreement to push Israel to stop fighting and remove its fighters. This has been ruled out by Israel, which has stated that it will ultimately pick up its attempts to destroy Hamas’s leadership and military apparatus.
In addition, Hamas demands the return of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who were forced to flee Gaza City and its environs south during the early stages of the almost six-month-old conflict.
According to the Israeli source, Israel had promised to free 700–800 inmates in exchange for the release of twice as many Palestinians, as well as to permit some of the displaced Palestinians to return to northern Gaza.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated on Tuesday that Hamas’s demands were “delusional” and that this indicated the Palestinians were not open to a negotiation.
About 300 relatives of the hostages and supporters gathered outside the Israeli Defense Headquarters in Tel Aviv, calling for an agreement to be reached to free the detainees. Holding posters with pictures of their loved ones, several people locked themselves inside cages in protest. One of the signs said, “No price is too high.”
Israel is allegedly delaying the negotiations as it continues its military campaign, according to Hamas.
As worries about a potential famine intensify and Palestinians in Gaza experience acute shortages of food, medication, and medical attention, the talks in Doha are still ongoing.
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