The Hamas terror group published an official statement on Sunday evening in which it rejected the terms for a hostage release-ceasefire deal which were discussed in Doha on Thursday and Friday, and blamed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for putting up new obstacles in the talks, APA reports citing The Times of Israel.
Netanyahu, for his part, reportedly told cabinet ministers earlier on Sunday that he was pessimistic about the chances for a deal, especially given that Israel had been effectively negotiating with mediating countries rather than with Hamas, which refused to send a delegation to the latest round of talks.
“The chances are not high,” the Kan public broadcaster quoted Netanyahu as telling ministers.
Netanyahu’s pessimism, coupled with Hamas’s rejection of the terms discussed in Doha, appeared to contradict reports from mediators that the negotiations were making progress, with a potential successful end in sight.
Netanyahu is to host visiting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday. Blinken is then set to fly to Cairo, where talks on a deal are ongoing.
The US has indicated that it aims to hold a second summit later this week and hopes to get deal finalized by the end of the week.
US President Joe Biden said Sunday that a Gaza ceasefire was “still possible” and that “we’re not giving up.”
Among the main sticking points in the negotiations is Netanyahu’s demand that the IDF remain deployed on the Philadelphi Corridor, which runs along the Gaza-Egypt border, to prevent Hamas from smuggling weapons into Gaza and reconstituting its military. This demand was not specified in Israel’s May 27 hostage deal proposal which has served as the basis for the subsequent talks, and is rejected by Hamas.
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