Israel and Hamas have exchanged accusations, each blaming the other for hindering negotiations on a Gaza truce and a hostage release deal, though the discussions remain ongoing.
As Iran prepared to retaliate against Israel with hundreds of drones and missiles for a recent attack in Damascus, Hamas announced it had responded to the latest cease-fire proposal.
While not outright rejecting the draft deal, the Palestinian group reiterated its demands for a permanent cease-fire and the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, a stance Israeli officials have consistently opposed.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reaffirmed his intent to launch a ground invasion of Rafah, the last Gaza city yet to face such action, which Israel considers Hamas’ last major stronghold.
Netanyahu has squarely blamed Hamas for being the primary obstacle to a deal that would secure the release of hostages held in Gaza.
“The cabinet and the security forces are united in their opposition to these unfounded demands,” he said, adding that Hamas “has refused any deal and any compromise proposal.”
On Sunday, Israel’s Mossad spy agency said in a statement released by Netanyahu’s office that Hamas had rejected the proposal and said it “proves” that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar “does not want a humanitarian deal and the return of the hostages.”
Sinwar was “continuing to exploit the tension with Iran,” Mossad said and was aiming for “a general escalation in the region.”
The comments came just hours before Iran launched more than 300 drones and missiles at Israel, the vast majority of which were intercepted, according to Israel.
Not at a standstill
Mossad said Israel would “continue to work to achieve the objectives of the war against Hamas with all its might and will turn every stone to bring back the hostages from Gaza.”
Despite the apparent gulf between the two sides, the talks, mediated by Egypt, the United States and Qatar, are ongoing in the Egyptian capital.
“The negotiations are not at a standstill,” but the mediators will have to go back to the drawing board, said Hasni Abidi of CERMAM, a Geneva-based think tank specializing in the Mediterranean and the Arab world.
A framework being circulated in Cairo would halt fighting for six weeks and see the exchange of about 40 hostages for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, as well as more aid deliveries into the besieged Gaza Strip.
A Hamas source told Agence France-Presse – (AFP) that, ultimately, later stages of the cease-fire would see all hostages released, Israel withdrawing all its forces from Gaza, the lifting of the siege and the reconstruction of the territory.
However, every attempt to negotiate a durable cease-fire in the six-month-long war has failed.
In November, a seven-day truce enabled the exchange of 80 hostages for 240 Palestinian prisoners, as well as 25 captives freed outside of the truce mechanism.
The latest conflict broke out with Hamas’ Oct. 7 incursion on southern Israel, which resulted in the deaths of around 1,200.
Israel’s retaliatory attack, aimed at destroying Hamas, has killed at least 33,729 people, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
Hamas also took about 250 hostages, 129 of whom remain in Gaza.
Israel withdrew most of its troops from the Gaza Strip on the six-month anniversary of the war, leaving only a single brigade in central Gaza while continuing to launch air strikes and bombardments.
Netanyahu has repeated his determination to launch a ground invasion of Rafah, where around 1.5 million Gazans are sheltering from the war, despite opposition from Israel’s top ally, the U.S.
He also faces increasing pressure from the Israeli public and the families of the hostages, with mass weekly demonstrations in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem demanding an end to his government and the return of the captives.
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