JERUSALEM: Qatar, a key mediator, on Tuesday stressed the urgency of brokering a ceasefire in Gaza after Hamas showed a “positive response” to a proposal, but Israel has yet to weigh in as its military prepares an offensive on some of the territory's most populated areas.
The prospect of an expanded assault on areas sheltering hundreds of thousands of civilians has sparked condemnation inside Israel and abroad. Most war-weary Palestinians see no place in Gaza as safe, not even declared humanitarian zones, after 22 months of war.
Many Israelis, who rallied in the hundreds of thousands on Sunday, fear the offensive will further endanger the remaining hostages in Gaza. Just 20 of the 50 remaining are thought to be alive.
“If this (ceasefire) proposal fails, the crisis will exacerbate,” Majed al-Ansari, a spokesperson for Qatar's foreign ministry, told journalists, adding they have yet to hear from Israel on it.
Al-Ansari said Hamas had agreed to terms under discussion. He declined to provide details but said the proposal was “almost identical” to one previously advanced by US envoy Steve Witkoff.
That US proposal was for a 60-day ceasefire, during which some of the remaining hostages would be released and the sides would negotiate a lasting ceasefire and the return of the rest.
“If we get to a deal, it shouldn’t be expected that it would be instantaneously implemented,” al-Ansari said. “We’re not there yet.”
That cautious assessment came a day after the foreign minister of Egypt, the other Arab country mediating the talks, said they were were pushing for a phased deal and noted that Qatar's prime minister had joined negotiations between Hamas leaders and Arab mediators.
Witkoff has been invited to rejoin the talks, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty told The Associated Press. Witkoff pulled out of negotiations less than a month ago, accusing Hamas of not acting in good faith. It was not clear how Witkoff has responded to the invitation.
A senior Israeli official said Tuesday that the country's position on a ceasefire “is consistent and has not changed.”
“Israel demands the release of all 50 hostages in accordance with the guidelines set by the Cabinet to end the war,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak with the media.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said a final push is needed to “complete the defeat of Hamas." He has vowed to continue the war until all the hostages are returned and Hamas has been disarmed.