After months of stalemate, there are new signs that Israel and Hamas might be moving closer to a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. A senior Palestinian official involved in the indirect negotiations told the BBC that talks were in a “decisive and final phase.”
Israel’s defense minister, Israel Katz, has also said an agreement is closer than ever. In the past few weeks, the US, Qatar, and Egypt have restarted their mediation efforts, reporting greater willingness from both sides in this 14-month war to conclude a deal.
A “working level” Israeli delegation is currently in the Qatari capital, Doha, amid a flurry of diplomatic activity in the region.
The Palestinian official outlined a three-phase plan that would see civilians and women soldiers held hostage in Gaza released in the first 45 days, with Israeli forces pulling out of city centers, the coastal road, and the strategic strip of land along the border with Egypt.
The official said a mechanism would allow displaced Gazans to return to the north of the territory. A second stage would involve freeing other remaining hostages and withdrawing troops, and finally, the third stage would conclude the war.
Of the 96 hostages still being held in Gaza, 62 are assumed by Israel to be still alive. The plan is based on what US President Joe Biden described as the deal on 31 May, and reports from all sides emphasize that key details still need to be worked out.
A round of talks in mid-October broke down without a deal after Hamas rejected a short-term ceasefire proposal.
His spokesman said Katz told members of the Israeli parliament’s foreign affairs committee on Monday: “We have not been this close to an agreement on the hostages since the previous deal,” referring to an exchange of hostages and Palestinian prisoners in Israel in November 2023.
He has since written on X: “My position on Gaza is clear. After we defeat Hamas’s military and governmental power in Gaza, Israel will have security control over Gaza with full freedom of action,” comparing this to the situation in the occupied West Bank.
“We will not allow any terrorist activity against Israeli communities and Israeli citizens from Gaza. We will not allow a return to the reality before 7 October.”
